Religious Studies coursework R3: Sikhs believe that, "All believers are equal" - Do you agree? I personally agree with the statement. This is because, one of the main beliefs of Sikhism is that everybody should be treated equally. They believe that all religions are just different paths to the same religious enlightenment, which is unlike some other religions who believe that their religion is the only right one. Sikhism teaches that all people are equal in the eyes of God. This is why worship in the Sikh place, the Gurdwara, is open to everyone. This is because Sikhs believe that since God is the creator of all and humanity is the supreme form of created life, human beings should be all equally and with respect. There are many entries in the Adi Granth that teach about equality. One example is: "We are God's own people and are neither high nor low nor in between." - Adi Granth 504. No-one is ever refused admission to the Gurdwara. Even if a person is not allowed to stay, because they are under the influence of alcohol or they are being disruptive, they do not leave empty handed, as everyone is fed in the Gurdwara. ...read more.

Middle

Because of this, the gurus were very tolerant and understanding of the other religions and refused to believe in the caste system created by the Hindus. This is why the scriptures contain text and songs that encourage equality. The main principles that Sikhism is based on are, belief in the oneness of God, the oneness of humanity, equality of women, tolerance towards other religions and service to humanity. All of these prove that Sikhism is firmly in belief of equality. Sikhism is one of the few religions that allow anyone to join their religion regardless of status, sex, race, former religion or age and they do this because they believe that all are equal. There are some, however, who do not believe that Sikhs believe in the statement "all believers are equal." This is because, although Sikhism preaches equality between all believers, there are still a few errors that seem to exist. For example, in the relationship between men and women and the relationship between adults and children, there are still a few things that suggest that there still is some prejudice happening. Firstly, we can take a look at the relationship between men and women. ...read more.

Conclusion

It is true that Sikhism allows anyone to join their religion, regardless of status, race, former religion or age. But some might argue that these Sikhs are not regarded as high in the community, as a Sikh who was born and bred in Sikhism. Some people might say that Sikhism does not regard a Sikh and non-Sikh couple (Sikh that marries a non-Sikh) as highly as they would regard a Sikh couple. This is because although not forbidden, Sikhism does not seem keen on interracial/inter-religion marriages. There is still tendency to marry within traditional occupation groups. The reason for this is because they believe that these marriages do not last as long a Sikh couple's marriage would. This is because a Sikh couple have the same beliefs and therefore not fight as much as a couple whose beliefs were completely different. Sikhs also believe that it is also good for raising the children, as with both parents being Sikh, the child would definitely grow up to be Sikh. Although rational reasons, some people see this as a prejudice and think that because of this, Sikhism tends to look upon Sikh couples with higher favour than they do, couples from different backgrounds. This would make it seem as if their beliefs on equality were flawed. Nonny Nze ...read more.

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